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OVULE 67 OWL OVULE, in botany, a rudimentary seed " which requires to be fertilized by pollen before it develops. OVUM, in physiology, the germ pro- duced within the ovary, and capable of developing into a new individual. In archaeology, ornaments in the form of eggs, curved on the contour of the ovolo, or quarter-round, and separated from each other by anchors or arrow heads. OWEN, ROBERT, an English social reformer and author; born in Newton, Montgomeryshire, Wales, March 14, 1771. He early turned his attention to social questions, publishing in 1813 "New Views of Society; or. Essays upon the Formation of the Human Charac- ter, and Book of the New Moral World." He attempted to found communist socie- ties in England, also in New Harmony, Ind., and later in Mexico. In his later years he became a believer in Spiritual- ism. His followers bore the name of Owenites, and were among the founders of the English Chartist movement. He died Nov. 19, 1858. OWEN, ROBERT DALE, an Ameri- can diplomatist, son of Robert; born in Glasgow, Scotland, Nov. 7, 1801; was educated in Sv^itzerland ; removed to the United States in 1825; was Representa- tive to Congress from Indiana (1843- 1847) ; and minister to Naples (1853- 1858). During the Civil War he was a prominent advocate of negro emanci- pation. Among his works are: "Moral Physiology" (1831); "Footfalls on the Boundary of Another World" (1860) ; "Beyond the Breakers" (1870), a novel; "Threading My Way" (1874). He died in Lake George, N. Y., June 17, 1877. OWEN, ROBERT LATHAM, United States Senator from Oklahoma, born in Lynchburg, Va., in 1856. He graduated from the Washington and Lee Univer- sity in 1877. After several years of teaching he studied law and was admit- ted to practice in 1880. He acted as r United States Indian agent for the Five Civilized Tribes from 1885 to 1889. He was elected United States Senator in 1907 and was re-elected in 1913. In the Senate he acted as chairman of the Com- mittee of Banking and Currency in the 65th Congress. OWEN MEREDITH. See LyttON, Edward Robert. OWEN SOUND, a town in Ontario, Canada, 34 miles W. by N. of Colling- wood, at the head of a long bay of the same name off Georgian Bay. It has a 'dry dock, 300 feet long, 55 feet wide, and 12 feet deep on sill at high water. OWEN STANLEY RANGE, a portion of a range of lofty mountains in the E. part of Bi'itish Guinea. Mount Owen Stanley is a peak 13,130 feet high. OWENSBORO, a city and county-seat of Daviess co., Ky., on the Ohio river, and on the Louisville, Henderson, and St. Louis, the Illinois Central, and the Louisville and Nashville railroads; 40 miles S. E. of Evansville, Ind. Here are Owensboro Female College (non- sect.), St. Francis Academy, a United States Government Building, water- works, street railroad and electric light plants, and daily and weekly newspa- pers. The city is noted for its large tobacco interests. It also has manufac- tories of flour, shingles, brick, ice, sewer pipe, furniture, etc. Pop. (1910) 16,- 011; (1920) 17,424. OWENS COLLEGE, Manchester, Eng- land, an institution established under the will of John Owens, a Manchester merchant, who died in 1846, and left about $500,000 for the purpose of found- ing an institution for providing a uni- versity education, in which theological and religious subjects should form no part of the instruction given. Teaching commenced in 1851, and the present Gothic building was completed in 1873. The success of the college led to the establishment of a new university, Vic- toria University, to consist of Owens College and several affiliated colleges located in different towns, but having its headquarters in Manchester. The Vic- toria University was instituted by royal charter in 1880. University College, Liverpool, was incorporated with Vic- toria University in 1884, and the York- shire College, Leeds, in 1888. There is a women's department in connection with Owens College. The charter of Victoria University gives power to grant degrees to women, and the examinations are throAvn open to them. OWEN'S LAKE, a lake in Inyo co., Cal., crossed in extreme W. by 118 W., 160 miles N. by E. of Los Angeles; its water is strongly impregnated with salt and carbonate of soda; it has no visible outlet; receives Owen's river; length about 16 miles, breadth, 10 miles. OWEN'S RIVER, a river of Califor- nia, which flows into Owen's lake. It is 175 miles long. OWL, in ornithology, a popular name for any nocturnal raptorial bird, of which about 250 species are known. A classification has been proposed, based